Gavin sat at his desk tapping his pen against parchment. Drafting bills was never something he liked doing, especially for King Kalak. Without fail, when tasked with work directly from the king, it heralded the deaths of the citizens he ruled. Today's document was to be no exception. In a bout of frustration, Gavin threw his pen at the table. It bounced and skidded far across the marble floor. He clenched his fist to bang against the desk but reserved himself at the last moment.
"I joined the Veiled Alliance to stop atrocities like these, and instead, I've become their author," he lamented.
"If you don't, someone else will." Cassia said gently. "Water?" She presented a small ceramic cup, barely halfway filled.
Gavin threw up a hand, dismissing the gesture. She placed the cup on the end table instead.
"I've finished my assignments for the evening. Is there anything else I can do for you?"
"Find a way to not enslave more citizens to finish this damned ziggurat."
"Regrettably, that is beyond my purview." She frowned, laying a sympathetic hand on his shoulder.
Gavin sat back and covered his forehead. "An increase in slaves for the iron mines; increased taxes; increased public executions; increased land seizures; and now this. You can't so much as sneeze in this city without a Templar killing or enslaving you." His hands dropped to his sides, and he couldn't help but slump. "What a terrible year for Tyr."
"Indeed, it would seem so. However, it's better than staying in Balic, isn't it?"
Gavin scoffed. "For how much longer?"
"It is... hard to stomach. I don't know how you manage to continue dealing with these monsters."
"With a heavy heart and conscious."
Cassia retrieved the pen and placed it back on the desk. Gavin sat upright again and glowered as he continued.
"Unfortunately, being a spy requires you to do things that are against your goals in order to keep up appearances. That's what I keep telling myself at least. Sometimes it seems impossible."
"It's half as difficult for one who can resist mind reading," Cassia countered.
"And twice as hazardous when dealing with paranoid Templar."
"And why we can have conversations like these in this city. Not many people have the talents you do. I know you can do it!"
Cassia gave a beaming smile. Exaggerated as it may be, Gavin did find it endearing. He placed his hand on hers.
"I appreciate the encouragement, but I suppose I don't have a choice. I either sign this or I sign our deaths. You're absolutely correct; if not me, someone else will inevitably take my place."
Gavin grabbed the pen and dipped it in ink. He penned the order on the parchment and signed his name. The draft was complete and tomorrow he would present it to the king. Kalak would decree it official and there was nothing anyone could do about it. He placed the pen down and stared at his hand.
"But, if families are to be destroyed and children enslaved, is it really better to let it be by my hands than another's?" he mumbled.
Cassia let out a half-suppressed laugh.
"I'm sorry, is this humorous to you?"
"You can be so melodramatic at times, that's all."
"Melodramatic? I think my tone rather matches the situation; don't you think? We are talking about people's lives here."
She rubbed his head, straightening his hair and trying to soothe him. "You can't put the world above yourself. Sometimes you need to step back and enjoy life."
"I don't find much enjoyment these days, sadly."
Cassia just smiled as she crouched below the desk. She crawled towards Gavin's and caressed her hands slowly up his lap. Gavin flinched at the feeling of her hands on his thighs.
"Remember when you used to be ticklish when I would touch you here?" she remarked.
"Please stop," he said sternly.
"I'm just trying to help." She did as he requested and made herself comfortable under the desk resting her head on his lap and caressing his hips.
"It's just... There's just too much to worry about right now."
"I think you should make use of your slave to help relieve the stress," she said with a wink.
He ran his fingers through her hair. Her bangs were short enough to not cover her face. Meticulously well-kept as well. He found her so beautiful he would just stare at her sometimes. He knew it was rude, but it was a weakness he just couldn't overcome. But the thought of her being his slave soured his mood further. He thought about how his peers would treat women like her if given the chance. The thought was revolting and imagining Cassia as a slave made him seethe. "Masquerading around as my slave is contemptable enough. I'd rather not feed that fantasy."
"What fantasy would you like to feed then?" she said innocently.
He sighed, realizing he walked right into that one. "I appreciate your assistance, but not your persistence. I don't know how many times I need to say it's hard to be in the mood given present circumstances."
"Gavin!" she snapped. She glared at him for a moment before exhaling and calming herself down. "There's always something to worry about. There's always going to be bad people. There's always going to be a lack of water. There's always going to be injustice. I understand why you're upset, and I'm upset about those things too. But more importantly I'm worried about you, and I can't have that on top of everything else."
"Why would I be worrying you?"
She circled her finger around his knee. "You've been shut in your office for over a week. Your hair is wildly overgrown, your beard unkempt, you've been missing meals and refusing to drink." She pouted playfully, but he saw the genuine worry she couldn't completely mask. "How could I not be worried?"
He clasped her hand and held it firmly as his thumb gently brushed across her fingers. "I'm sorry for causing you worry. Trying to outmaneuver the Templar is consuming every ounce of my energy. Every hour of the day feels like a battle."
She laid her head against his hand and closed her eyes. "I understand the weight of it all. You have a great burden to bear, but we're all in this together-- you, me, Anna, the entire Alliance. But since I'm here now, I have to insist you offload some of that burden to me."
